The United States’ GDP release for the last quarter of 2021 came in higher than expected. Even with the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID, real GDP increased by 1.7% compared to the previous quarter and is 5.5% higher than in the last quarter of 2020. With the Federal Reserve currently implementing the first of what are planned to be 4 interest rate hikes...Read More
The United States’ GDP release for the last quarter of 2021 came in higher than expected. Even with the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID, real GDP increased by 1.7% compared to the previous quarter and is 5.5% higher than in the last quarter of 2020. With year over year inflation currently at 7.2%, the rest of this analysis will use inflation adjusted totals...Read More
Non-farm payroll employment reached a total of 866,200 in Puerto Rico during the month of December 2021. Compared to December 2020, this is an increase of 3.5%. Compared to November 2021, there was a decrease of 1,100 (0.1%). This was the first month with a decrease in employment since May 2021. The category with the largest decrease in employment was retail sales, which went down...Read More
Non-farm payroll employment reached a total of 866,200 in Puerto Rico during the month of December 2021. Compared to December 2020, this is an increase of 3.5%. Compared to November 2021, there was a decrease of 1,100 (0.1%). This was the first month with a decrease in employment since May 2021. The category with the largest decrease in employment was retail sales, which went down...Read More
The consumer price index for Puerto Rico for the month of December 2021 came in at 124.15. This was a 0.03% increase when compared to November 2021, and a 4.2% increase when compared to December 2020. Prices have increased significantly since the beginning of the COVID pandemic. We can expect inflation to continue being a significant issue well into 2022. Until COVID settles down at...Read More